President Duterte on Friday said he loved China as an ally but questioned the claim by the Asian economic powerhouse over the whole South China Sea. It was the first time that Duterte directly confronted China publicly on whether it had the right to claim the strategic waterway. The President made the remarks in a speech at the 25th International Conference on the Future of Asia in Tokyo organized by Nikkei Inc. “I love China,” he said. “it has helped us a bit. But it behooves upon us to ask: Is it right for a country to claim the whole ocean?”

Aurelio, J. M. (2019, June 1). Du30 to China: Why claim the entire South China Sea?. Philippine Daily Inquirer, pp. A1, A4.